Failing At Love
by kittensandmilk
Summary: Honey Lemon has had a crush on Tadashi Hamada since freshman year, and as her Junior year comes to an end she begins to panic. Finally the day comes when she decides to talk to him, after a disagreement and the misplacement of a glitter pencil, the two learn that they aren't so different from each other after all. Rated T for now due to cussing and mild sexual activity
1. Goodbye Glitter Pencil

** Hello everyone! Just a quick Authors note here! I am currently writing this Tadahoney fanfiction and I plan to write excessively over the break! Feedback is appreciated and I hope you love it!**

Honey Lemon pushed her large, drooping glasses up the bridge of her nose for the fifth time. She was reading an amazing book about different chemical reactions to try at home. The first chapter was all about vinegar and baking soda - ya know, beginners stuff. Even though she thought some of the experiments were so easy and overdone, she still found it as an amusing read. She even had her name on the waitlist for about ten other chemistry books, she thought of the subject as 'her thing.' At the moment, she was nestled in the corner of the school library, she was _supposed_ to be studying for her math final but found herself in the science section of the library for the fourth time this week. Besides, math was her second best subject so she didn't see any need to study quite yet. She flipped through the pages whispering calculations into the paper, people probably thought she was crazy! Thankfully, though, right now she was alone.

The 5th period bell rang, signaling the end of lunch and any reading sessions that had been taking place. She quickly stood from the rough, carpeted floor and slung her beige shoulder bag over her shoulder. As she walked out she slipped the thick book - textbook maybe - into her bag, giving the librarian a friendly wave goodbye before heading into the crowded hall. It seemed like everyone was _trying_ to push her over, or slam her into the lockers at the very least. Unfortunately, on her thin legs and high pumps it wasn't difficult for their goals to be achieved. Although the act seemed very intentional, as her back hit the cold metal, she knew that whoever pushed her was probably being pushed by another, who was being pushed by another - hallways have very vicious cycles.

With a lot of struggling and kindly pushing past people she made it to her fifth period class, chemistry! She nearly burst through the door as she quickly walked over to her seat, her usual grin plastered on her face. Her desk was located in the the third row next to a large window where sunlight poured in. Honey quite liked her spot, it wasn't too far back but it wasn't too close to the front either - front seats always feel so... _empty_. When she reached her desk she had to shimmy past her lab partners chair, sucking in to get between the pushed out and occupied chair that was mere inches away from the table behind them. it was a tight squeeze but she got to her seat that was next to the wall.

"Hi, Gogo!" She address her friend by her group given nickname. The black haired girl had her feet propped up on the black lab table, her arms folded over her chest.

"Hey Honey, why are you later than usual? Normally you're the first one here!" The shorter girl tried to make small talk but the gum in her mouth didn't mix too well with her awful social skills.

"Oh! I was just so into this great book about chemical reactions! There was even this - this one where you combine magnesium with carbon dioxide and its makes this crazy burst of smoke and light! All I need is a bit of magnesium, two pieces of dry ice, and a _blowtorch_!" Honey grinned widely, excited over one of her new found discoveries.

"Your enthusiasm to torching dangerous chemicals amuses me." Gogo's voice balanced on the edge of 'can you be more sarcastic than this?' and 'oh thanks for actually caring!' By now though, Honey Lemon could divide that sarcasm from the serious. "I'd like to hid my food in this book, what pages are you okay with me cutting large squares into?" Honey shook her head at her friends remark but before she could give a reply she was cut off from the world.

"Oh. My. _Gallium_!" Honey Lemon gasped with a hushed voice so that only Gogo could hear her.

"You're using elements instead of words so this must be important.." This time she _was_ sarcastic because Honey was always replacing everyday words with periodic elements.

"Look! look! its him, he's _**so **_dreamy!" Honey swooned as her ultimate crush passed by their table, finding his seat at the back of the room, by himself.

"Honey, you see him everyday! Plus, you do _this _everyday! You need to _relax_! Boys don't like girls who are - er - a bug in the ear." Honey Lemon admired her way of calling her 'obsessed' even if it was an insult, it was adorable.

"But, Gogo, he's perfect!" Her friend simply scoffed and sat back in her chair again as Honey's eyes continued to waver toward him. _Tadashi Hamada,_ the coolest kid in town! The sun from the large window perfectly lit his dark tufts of hair that peaked from the edge of his cap, old and worn. the light reflected off his velvety brown eyes, and his faded blue cardigan only made the color scheme more perfect. He had tight, dark brown jeans on and his arms were folded over his chest as he stared out the window. Honey Lemon sighed leaning into her hand, her elbow propped up against the table as she studied his beautiful face. Gogo was _right,_ she was crushing. _hard_. "Today will be the day I talk to him!" She smiled, a sudden burst of enthusiasm sat her up.

"You say that everyday."

"Oh don't be such a Debbie downer! I think I can actually do it this time! I can.. I can - borrow a pencil - yes!" Honey felt like that was the best idea ever! As if anyone didn't know she was _always_ prepared! "No that would work…" She pursed her lips, continuing to think. "Maybe I could say I need help understanding a problem!"

"Honey, everyone knows you would never need help understanding a problem." Gogo discouraged her once again, but for logical reasons at least!

Honey Lemon gasped. "You're right! He could find out I lied and he'd probably hate me! Oh dubnium, why do i have to be so good at chemistry!" she snapped her fingers and grasped her glitter pencil, thoughtfully tapping it on the table. Her pencil was one of her favorite semi-scientific projects ever, it included making a long lasting paste from certain chemicals that held better than glue. After, she rolled it through a mixture of pink and yellow glitter so it would match her vibrant hair and colorful headband. Her final touch was a cute little beaker charm that she welded to the metal piece of the eraser. She had been vandalizing all her pencils since the third grade.

"You're complaining about that?" Gogo laughed then kicked her feet off the desk, turning to face her blonde haired friend. "Look, Honey, even if you could hold a conversation with that boy I _promise_ you it will not be about schoolwork. He's just not interested. Do you know of anything he actually might _want_ to talk about?" Gogo had a point, if she was going to get on his good side, she'd have to get him with something good.

"Well… he seems pretty into drawing. I've seen him sketching in this cute little sketchbook _all _the time! Maybe I could casually go back there and sharpen my pencil then just 'happen' to notice his drawings!" Honey smiled, actually feeling truly confident about this one.

"You're getting the right idea!" Gogo laughed as she encouraged her. "At least it's a start so give it a shot! _Gogo_ get 'em girl!" Honey Lemon laughed as she stood from her chair. The bell had just rang when she reached the back of the classroom. The teacher would be coming in soon so she tried to hurry. She put her wooden pencil in the electric sharpener, the loud _vrrr_ -ing caught everyones attention. Well, _almost_ everyone.

Honey Lemon turned to walk past his desk, feeling confident. It was to her surprise, though, that his sketchbook **wasn't **out. Her cheeks flushed pink as she took a walk of shame back to her desk, her heels clicking to her chair. Just as she sat down their teacher, Mr. Callaghan entered the room.

Pages of notes and several trips to the sharpener later, she finally timed it right! And it was a good thing too, she had made a dramatic advance toward the end of her beloved glitter pencil. The teacher had let the class work on book work with a partner while he graded the piling worksheets that sat on his desk, so it was the best possible chance for a conversation. As she approached Tadashi's desk she noticed his left hand scribbling away on the sketching paper but she couldn't see exactly what he was drawing. She went with it anyway. "Oh my gallium, did you draw that?"

His hand stopped and he gave a sarcastic laugh as he answered her, his eyes not leaving his paper. "What? Did you just use a periodic element in your sentence?"

Oh no! She had already messed up, just eight words and she was done for!

"Uh- I - yeah… it's this, stupid, thing I do." She shook her head then tried to force it off. Taking a closer look at his notebook she saw something a little different from what she was expecting, instead of doodles and drawings in the pages of the book, there were sketches - blueprints really - sprawled across the paper. They were all creative and unique, little inventions with scientific and mathematical calculations everywhere. Honey admired all the variables and equations and labels, it was so specific and _accurate._ "Woah, these are **amazing**, did you come up with all of this? The calculations are perfect and the ideas are so original. Tadashi, you're a _genius_!" The enthusiasm in her voice was blatantly displayed and she even started to poke at the book itself.

"Hey, I'd appreciate it if you didn't just flip through my book." Tadashi pulled the small, leather-bound notebook from her hands and closed it, he didn't look too pleased with her. And just like that Honey felt so cold and lonely, as though she was lost in a snowy wilderness and someone had just put ice water over her warm fire. Now she was an outsider looking in, and she didn't know Tadashi well enough to open the door again. She felt so helpless and her confidence shut down.

"I - I'm sorry, I just really like science and stuff." Her eyes glanced around, trying not to make eye contact with his intense stare, he was oddly intimidating. He didn't answer. Honey tapped her finger nervously for a second before the bell ring. "Oh! Uh.. Catch ya later!" She stood up and rushed to her desk shoving everything in her bag and bolting for the door. She had thoroughly embarrassed herself and had already decided she wouldn't even make eye contact with that boy for at least another week.

**Hopefully you enjoyed that first chapter there! I know it wasn't very exciting but stories need their exposition and all! Haha, anyway I am currently working on chapter 2 and it should be up real soon! Take care :)**


	2. Well that could have gone better

**I just want to say how thankful I am for the positive reviews of the last chapter! I'm so happy people are already enjoying it and supporting it! Here's the second chapter, I tried to make it sort of interesting but it's still introductory stuff so there's not much for me to work with. Soon though I promise!**

The next day, Honey Lemon didn't spend a minute in the library. She promised her friends she would attend lunch with them like a normal person instead of hiding away in book piles. The blonde didn't waste any time pitying those who had to wait in the long lunch lines just to eat awful food. She used to feel bad until she realized they tortured themselves under their own volition. She found it strange that the food always smelled so good but ended up being dry and tasteless or simply disgusting, she assumed it was due to a chemical release in the body. As she took her swift, wide steps across the tile cafeteria floor she glanced at recognizable faces. Hiro was the first to catch her eye, the younger brother of Tadashi, who was the smartest, and youngest kid in his sophomore class, being just thirteen when he completed freshman year online in a matter of days. She considered talking with him but saved that for another day, she wondered though, if it would be easier to hold a conversation with Hiro.

Honey eventually made her way to the courtyard, outside the large cafeteria, to meet with her friends. As usual, they were all grouped around a circular table chatting about schoolwork and projects. "Hey everyone!" She smiled finding her spot and sitting down.

"Hey Honey." They all spoke those words though it was in scattered order.

She had a peculiar group of friends. To her right was a short, red - haired boy named Fred. He occasionally dressed like a homeless child but usually just showed up at school looking like you're typical skater-boy or druggie. Of which he was neither. Fred was the son of very rich parents who spoiled him with whatever he wanted. Lucky for them, he wasn't too ambitious. The boy had a passion for comic books and figurine collecting, everyday he had another of the two to introduce to the group and there was always a special story to how he got everyone. The special stories never differed but it was a good topic of conversation nonetheless.

Next to him was her friend Gogo Tomago, though the two girls differed in many ways, they got along quite wonderfully. Gogo was the quiet, passive-aggressive type. She didn't really take part in conversation too much and preferred to consider and display herself as an outcast. The skinny jeans, leather jacket, fingerless motor-gloves, and purple streak in her hair kept many people away. But that was how Gogo liked it.

The two met in seventh grade, Gogo used to tease Honey because she was flat-chested and didn't need a bra. That changed though, over the summer and the next year Gogo apologized, proving she wasn't a terrible person. A few weeks after they became acquaintances, Gogo had held a sleepover birthday party. When Honey Lemon was the only one who showed up, she knew who her real friends were. They've been best friends ever since.

Finally, to Honey Lemon's left was Wasabi. He was a tall and bulky boy with dark hair and skin. He was a science enthusiast and was usually caught talking about physics, which also interested Honey but not as intensely as her obsession with chemistry. Though Wasabi is probably the sweetest guy she knew, he too seemed to scare people off. Maybe his height and muscular advantage on most people was what caused them to avoid his path.

Yes, they were an odd group of lonely people that found each other, became friends, and happily decided to keep it that way, always being friends even after senior year came their way.

"So how'd it go?" Gogo snickered a bit noticing Honey's absence from the present as she wandered through her thoughts. The blonde shot a glare at her shorter friend, she didn't want to talk about Tadashi in front of her guy friends, that would just be weird.

"How'd what go?" Wasabi questioned, obviously ignoring her uncomfortable state. He was a big enthusiast on telling friends _everything_.

"It's nothing." Honey tried to wave it off with the gesture of her hand but she wasn't as smooth as she thought she was and so the topic remained.

"Honey Lemon talked to Tadashi Hamada today!" Gogo's voice was mocking, like a third grader chanting 'you can't catch me' and clearly Honey Lemon could not.

"Honey, why would you do that!" Fred burst into the conversation obviously more into it now that it had escalated. "He doesn't talk to anyone!"

"Yeah, that guy's an outsider, he doesn't want conversation." Wasabi continued for his friend.

Honey shook her head with a small laugh. "That's not true… Actually, I think the thing he truly needs _is_ a friend. And he's actually really intelligent! He's always drawing in this sketchbook of his, except he's not drawing, he's brainstorming all these wonderful inventions. Some of them are even similar to the ones we make outside of school!" She nodded hoping she could shift their view on the boy.

Fred shrugged "I still think you should keep your distance from him, he's bad news." Why did Gogo have to bring it up? Now it's turned into some big debate. luckily, though, they didn't know she had a crush on him.

"Well would you look at that." Gogo smirked, looking past Honey who was sitting across the table.

"What?" Honey Lemon turned around to see Tadashi approaching them. Why was he coming to her table, what was he going to say? She immediately stood up and tried to look a little more smooth than she really was. "Hey, Tadashi." She smiled as she met him a few feet from their table.

"Hi Aiko." It was weird hearing her real name, she spent so little time with people other than her friends that she had become accustomed to her nickname. It was even more strange to hear it come from his mouth, spoken so casually _and_ he actually knew her name.

"What - uh - what are you doing here?" She chuckled nervously as she clasped her hands behind her back. Of course she'd be nervous around him, she just wished her constant swaying and fidgeting didn't show it so blatantly.

Tadashi gave a chuckle at her words. "Am I not welcome here? Because I can just turn around and be on my merry way. I wouldn't mind keeping your glitter pencil anyway."

"No it's not that it's just - wait my glitter pencil?" She tilted her head as he raised it from his brown bag that closely resembled her own. "OMG! Thanks so much I was wondering where that had gone!" Honey Lemon happily reached for her beloved pencil.

"Ah, ah, ah." Tadashi laughed again and pulled it from her reach. She thought his laugh was one of the most beautiful things ever. "It's just, what?" He implied that he wanted her to finish her previous sentence.

She folded her arms over her chest as if upset that he took her pencil from her. "It's just unlike you to socialize with me… or _anyone_ for that matter." She knew she sort of messed up when his face became a little harder. It was as though she had pulled the wrong string. "Not that you don't have any friends or anything, I'm not saying that -"

"Except you are." Tadashi shook his head at her as though he was dissapointed. "Man, I - I thought you were supposed to be nice."

"What? No! Tadashi, I'm sorry, It just came out wrong! That's not what I-" Her rambling was cut off again.

"You know what, it's fine. It doesn't matter. Just take your stupid glitter pencil…" He pushed the pencil into her hands and walked off. She felt so cornered, it had been going so well. They were getting along and holding a conversation, then he became so mad. She knew it was mainly her fault but, he took her too seriously. She would never try to come off as mean, not to Tadashi. It was as though all ability to speak had left her, _he_ had left her. She wanted to do something but she couldn't will herself to move or speak, and she couldn't understand why such a small thing had that effect on her.

"Honey, how about you sit down." It was Wasabi who spoke first, hoping to bring her back to laughing and talking with her friends, but that wasn't something she wanted right now. Call her an over-exaggerater but Honey felt like she could cry. Tadashi Hamada, someone she liked _so_ much not only yelled at her, but indirectly called her _**mean**_. No one's ever called her mean before. She closed her gaping mouth, almost as if biting back tears, then turned and grabbed her bag before running to the library.

For a while she just sat at a large round table, by herself. She didn't speak, she didn't read, she just stared at her small pale hands that were clasped and resting on the smooth wood. Honey wondered how she could possibly fix this, would he even want to talk to her? How was it so easy for her to take one step forward then five steps back? How could she be failing so badly at love? Though, love wasn't a class so technically she couldn't be failing it could she? No. She was _definitely _failing at love. Finally, though, she decided to talk to him in chemistry, it really wasn't that big of a deal and she was sure apologizing would help. As long as he let her finish her sentences.

The bell rang and she rushed to her class, running through the words she planned to say over and over again so that she would not mess up. She had to make this better otherwise she'd always just be that girl that pissed him off at lunch that one day. Honey Lemon wanted to be more than that, she _needed_ to be more than that. As she rounded into the classroom she noticed him sitting, head down, drawing in his sketchbook. She smiled softly at how adorable he was but immediately shook it off when he glared up at her, the sound of her heels clicking was a pretty good warning sign of her approach. She took a seat next to him in the empty chair that sat at his lab table, she always wondered why he sat alone. "Hey Tadashi." She said weakly, already completely messing up her briefly rehearsed lines.

Silence.

"I said, hey Tadash -"

"What do you want?" He dropped his pen, hitting it hard on the table. She already knew this wasn't going well.

"Look," She sighed deciding to give an organic apology, one that wasn't thought over. One that just simply was an apology, that she sincerely meant. "I honestly didn't mean to imply that you may or may not have friends, I wasn't thinking and it came out wrong. I would never try to be a mean person… And I am sorry." He didn't answer for a while, he just shook his head and stared at the black surface of the table as though he was contemplating the idea of whether or not to forgive her.

"No." Tadashi's voice was quiet now, more sincere than she had ever heard before. "Honestly I shouldn't be hurt by it. I mean, I _do_ sit at a lunch table by myself." He chuckled and she was glad he was smiling around her again. She actually felt so much better, and when he spoke she saw an opportunity - one she couldn't pass up.

"You could _totally_ sit with me and my friends! We'd love to have you there! It would be really fun and maybe we could all be friends!" Her voice probably sounded too eager for him because he looked a little less happy as he pursed his lips.

"That's really nice, I just don't think…" He didn't finish but she didn't urge him too, she probably wouldn't like the ending anyway.

"It's fine.." She nodded looking down, a little embarrassed, now, about how confident she was. "It was just a suggestion, I get it." With her dignity shred and the feeling of failure hanging over her head, once again, she stood from the seat to walk back to her own.

"Hey Aiko," He interrupted her walking, calling her by her first name again. She swore he had such a power over her as even that made her stomach fill with butterflies. "I'll think about it." Honey smiled to with a nod before walking calmly back to her desk. However, she felt like she could dance around the room and her grin turned into a smile that she couldn't hold back. He said he'd think about it! She absolutely _could not_ wait for lunch tomorrow.

** Hope you enjoyed that chapter! I promise I am trying to improve my writing throughout this process but feedback is always helpful! So please leave comments about the story positive or constructive criticism, I greatly appreciate either! Thanks so much for reading and I hope you stick around for the rest!**


	3. The Not-So-Lucky Lucky Cat Cafe

Honey Lemon was undoubtedly the first person at her lunch table the next day, she didn't mean to get her hopes up but she was currently excited to greet a new friend. Then again, maybe they weren't even friends yet. She frowned and began nervously combining her fingers through a small bit of her butterscotch hair. Honey liked Tadashi so much, she still could distinctly remember the day he first talked to her. She had just moved from a different town and was fairly nervous to start high school in a big city, regardless of her cheery personality. It was the second day of school and she recalled how embarrassed she felt walking into the large building that day because she had forgotten to put on makeup in her rush after waking up late. It didn't help either that she also happened to share P.E. with him that year, so her first impression was a pair of oversized gym shorts and a baggy shirt. With her hair up in a pathetic messy bun, she had never felt more unattractive in her life. Of course _that_ was they day he had noticed her. "You're not from around here are you?" He had spoken in a friendly tone as he smiled at her unfamiliar face. Clearly everyone at this high school had gone to elementary and middle school together as well. Needless to say, she was easy to point out. When she shyly uttered the word 'No,' he nodded and introduced himself as Tadashi Hamada. From that day forth she had been crushing hard, he talked to her when she looked so terrible, he was nice to her when she was so scared.

Sadly, though, they had never really became friends just names that went with faces. Which was why Honey was now so determined to break the thick layer of ice between them. The task proved to become more difficult as the years went on, now in their junior year, Tadashi was so closed off and she didn't know why. He used to be such an outgoing person but ever since this year, he's been so cold and lonely. She just wished she understood him.

"Hey Honey!" Fred wasn't the boy she was hoping to see at her table but she was still happy to greet him anyway.

"Hi Fred! Have you, for any reason, seen Tadashi walking this way… Maybe…?" Her voice was shy and the question was abruptly placed but she was becoming anxious.

"No… Why would that guy be stopping by again? Did you lose another pencil? The dude knows you have, like, twenty, right?" Fred laughed and sat down, pulling his 'Godzilla' lunch box from his backpack.

"Oh, no, it's not that. I just.." She sighed, for some reason feeling more nervous around her friend than she should. "I invited him to sit with us at lunch."

"You did _what_?!"

"What's all the yelling about?" Gogo chuckled as, she too, walked up to the table that was beginning to gather its regular occupants, no Tadashi though.

"Honey Lemon asked Tadashi Hamada to sit with us!" Fred sounded dumbfounded, as if her actions were the craziest thing she'd ever done.

"Well now that's just _crazy talk_." The sarcasm in Gogo's voice made Honey a little more comfortable. Her friend realized how dramatic Fred was being about something that shouldn't be treated as a big deal.

"Don't worry Fred, it looks like he's a no show anyway…" Honey trailed off. Sure lunch still had a good amount of time left to it but, Tadashi didn't show any signs of having other priorities. As time went by and Wasabi joined their table, she knew her fears were correct, he wasn't coming. Why had she even offered?

"Honey, maybe he just had something else he needed to do." Gogo placed a reassuring hand on Honey Lemon's shoulder while the boys argued about whether Godzilla would be stronger than king kong.

"Yeah you're probably right."

That was last week.

Friday, at lunch, there still seemed to be no sign of Tadashi, she didn't talk with him about it in chem because she didn't want to come off as pushy. Gogo had already told her that guys don't like pushy girls. Now, though, all Honey wanted was for her crush to show. She remembered then, that he never did say 'yes' and so maybe he never actually intended to stop by at all..

"Honey Lemon, why the long face?" The girl nearly jumped from her seat when the sound of the familiar, masculine voice pulled her from her worries. "Hey!" Tadashi casually strolled up to her table with another boy by his side.

"Tadashi?" Honey Lemon couldn't will herself to say more, she was purely shocked.

"Yeah," He laughed as he scratched the back of his neck, almost as a nervous gesture. "Sorry I haven't shown up the last few days, I made a friend and wanted to show him around. His name is Max, he's new."

Honey glanced to the tall boy that stood next to Tadashi, he was extremely pale and his hair was short, nearly as white as his skin. She hadn't seen the boy around but he seemed friendly as he gave a smile and a wave that looked shy, almost robotic too. "It's nice to meet you Max, I'm Aiko but my friends call me Honey Lemon." She smiled at the chubby, albino boy. He did look strange but she'd never judge a book by it's cover.

"Do they?" Tadashi seemed a little confused, as if he didn't understand why he hadn't heard her nickname before, with that she gave a nod. She was happy to discover that he truly did have a reason for his absence and was actually meaning to sit with her sooner. Maybe they _were_ friends.

The lunch passed quickly but was filled with long conversation about everyone. They all shared a bit about themselves to learn more and Honey was happy to hear Tadashi speak, even though he was the one who said the least. Most of the time he just sat quietly, he seemed distant even with everyone so involved his mind was elsewhere and she couldn't understand why.

Max was the star of the table, everyone took interest in where he was from and what he liked to do. Turns out, the boy was very interested in medical fields. He said one day he hoped to become a personal health care assistant for some rich person, explaining how people under that profession get paid a ton just to sit around in the mansion of their employer in case they are needed. Fred gladly invited Max to his house sometime, suggesting that maybe Fred's parents would take the peculiar boy up on that offer.

The days went by quickly, of course her favorite time was lunch where she continued to try and bring Tadashi into the conversation more. Sadly, he just wasn't too interested in sharing much about himself. Honey decided it would be best if she stopped pushing, he was sitting at her table. Couldn't that at least be good enough for now?

The bell that signalled the end of the school day, and the school week, caused Honey Lemon to jump from her chair. She had lost track of time, scribbling in her math notebook till the sound of the bell. The girl smiled recalling the plans that she'd made today. She'd meet her friends by Gogo's car and they'd all pile in so Gogo could speed off to the Lucky Cat Cafe. It seemed like everyone in school had been talking about the grand opening of this awesome cafe. So, of course, her and her friends made plans to be the first ones there.

She rushed down the hallway and out to the high school's parking lot where she spotted Gogo's yellow sports car which deemed two thick, black stripes down the center.

The boys had been so jealous when they found out she was getting such a hot ride, but it suited Gogo.

"Hey everyone!" Honey addressed her friends as she hopped in the back, they were all already there. "Guess I wasn't as quick as I thought, huh?" She chuckled nervously while she clicked her buckle into place and held onto the back seat cushion, preparing herself for the ride. Gogo had an obsession with speeding in her car but some how never getting caught. Her driving was crazy, but not technically unsafe. She had never gotten into an accident and never got a ticket - but that was just luck. Once they pulled out of the parking lot everything was zooming by, it made Honey Lemon dizzy just looking out the window.

Fred was holding onto the back of Gogo's chair and Wasabi had a hand over his mouth, he was easily motion sick so it wasn't an unfamiliar gesture. To her leather seats though, it was a great threat she wasn't willing to see through.

"You all are overreactors." Gogo sighed as she slowed down.

"I'm sorry, Gogo, I just don't think my stomach can handle your driving." Wasabi apologized as he swallowed hard.

"Pfft, big baby." Honey Lemon laughed a bit at that remark, though it was inaudible she agreed with Gogo. Wasabi was the softest, sweetest person she knew.

Honey happily looked out the window now, watching the old fashioned townhouses pass by in slow blurs. She thought Sanfransokyo was extremely beautiful, happy she'd left the town that she used to live in, the school she used to go to. The colors here were so bright, and even though not all was perfect, the people that lived in the city seemed fairly content.

Soon the car pulled up to the adorable cafe, a sign that read: Grand Opening! Adorned the wall above the double doors. Their group hopped from the car and Honey was the first in the cafe, pointing to all the lucky cat decorations.

"Do you like the place?" A short, middle-aged woman approached the group of friends with a smile. She was holding a notepad and a pen was propped behind her ear. Her tufts of light brown hair were cut short into what looked like a slightly grown-out pixie cut. "Welcome to the Lucky Cat Cafe!" She smiled at them brightly, clearly overwhelmed with the excitement of the day. A name tag was pinned onto her shirt reading 'Aunt Cass.'

"_Aunt_ Cass?" Wasabi was the first to question it.

"It's what the kids call me." Aunt Cass winked with a smile, showing off her friendliness. "Can I get you all a table?" She nodded for them to follow her into the cafe where she found them an empty table to sit at. "Your waiter will be with you in a moment." She smiled then headed back to the front of the cafe where she resumed her position as the hostess.

"Isn't this just the cutest little place?" Honey Lemon chimed as she slung her backpack over her chair and took her seat across from Wasabi.

The group chatted with each other for a bit, discussing school work and weekend plans until a voice, presumably their expected waiter, interrupted their conversation.

"Hello and welcome to the Lucky Cat Cafe! Can I start you off with some drinks?"

Honey recognized that voice anywhere. "Tadashi?"


	4. What's my name again?

**Hello everyone! I've been really busy lately as I missed a whole week of school last week and am now catching up on homework! However I did manage to find the time to type up this chapter and post it to you! **

** Oh I also realized that I forgot to add a little authors note to the last chapter and explain my absence… Simply put I was at my dads in Texas for ten days after christmas and he didn't have any wifi or anything so I couldn't post or even get onto to google docs to type up extra chapters! But I'm back now and I'll be trying to get new chapters to you as quickly as possible!**

"Hey!" Honey Lemon yelped as she immediately sat up straighter, nearly forcing a smile on her face, she never did that but today - despite how wonderful he was to look at - she was hoping to catch up and spend some time with her friends not _unintentionally _drooling over Tadashi.

"Oh, hi Aiko!" He spoke her name with a cheeky smile before greeting the others. "Fred, Gogo, Wasabi! It's a pleasant surprise to see you all here! And to think I was worried I'd have to talk to boring customers all day!" The dark haired boy continued to smile and make small talk with Wasabi and Fred, Tadashi and Wasabi got along really well and Honey assumed it was because they were so alike… but why did _he_ get called by his name and she just got 'Aiko!?' Even _Gogo _was addressed by her proper nickname but Honey was left in the dust, or so it seemed.

"It's a surprise to see you here too…" Honey Lemon continued off of his sentence, inviting herself into the conversation. "You - uh - never mentioned working here, why?" Honey was babbling like a fool, but she kind of felt neglected, he didn't talk much and she knew that but couldn't he at least tell them important things like this.

"I also didn't mention living here so I fail to see your point." He chuckled lightly then nodded to the spiraling staircase in the far corner of the restaurant when he noticed their faces of confusion. "It's a house upstairs. When we got the place a few months ago and there was all this extra space, so we started brainstorming different fun uses we could get out of it. Since my aunt Cass has always wanted a restaurant, it seemed like the natural choice." He nodded, the soft smile never leaving his lips. Tadashi seemed happier at home, which was understandable, but she still noticed a difference in his disposition since freshman or even sophomore year.

"That's really cool Tadashi!" Gogo nodded sounding rather sincere. Maybe she, too, noticed his happiness and wanted to preserve it. Honey knew this was true when she felt Gogo lightly hit her leg with the back of her boot, gesturing to make a move - a little one of course.

"Uh, yeah! I guess we don't really know too much about you, huh… You'll - uh - have to tell us more about yourself sometime!" She was nervous of course, but regardless of the 'uh's' her words sounded fairly natural. When Tadashi smiled a soft smile at her, she knew she had done well. 

"Oh - um - I nearly forgot! What can I get you guys?"

"Just a few chocolate shakes all around!" Fred nodded happily, of course he was as excited as everyone else to indulge in the creamy, chocolate goodness of a milkshake.

"Yeah," Gogo nodded in agreement, "Honey Lemon and I are going to go out alone after this… for a girls night." Honey smiled as she listened to Gogo's words, not only did _she_ use her nickname - hoping she could drill it in his head - but Honey was reminded of their long awaited 'girls night.' Their kind of girls night wasn't as typical as the ones in the movies, although it did consist of similar events such as shopping, they never gossiped or did each others nails. The night usually ended with a scary movie marathon and some popcorn, cuddling up on Honey's small sofa in her basement till the late hours of the night.

"Sounds like a blast!" Tadashi nodded before turning to go, "I'll be right back with your milkshakes!"

Once he was out of hearing range, Fred burst into a totally different conversation. "Well, he's oddly perky today."

"You misjudge him, Fred." Wasabi immediately contradicted Fred's statement, in favor of the groups new friend. "Tadashi is extremely intelligent and quite fun to be around, you shouldn't be so hard on him. The last time him and I hung out he said he thinks that you are very nice, don't make him regret that statement." Just as soon as Wasabi finished his sentence, Fred was nodding apologetically and sinking in his chair.

"Thank you, Wasabi… Wait, _hung out?_"

"Yeah, just last weekend… You didn't _really_ think Tadashi and I became so close through lunchtime small talk, did you?" Wasabi chuckled a little and she pushed a piece of hair back behind her ear.

"No, o - of course not…" _Wow, _It seemed like everyone was getting way closer to Tadashi than she was, even Fred was _nice_, she was just Aiko.

The group had happily finished their shakes and bid Tadashi goodbye, then Gogo sped off to Fred's where she dropped the boys. Finally, it was just Honey and Gogo. They both could not have been happier.

"To the mall?"

"To the mall!" Honey chimed as they drove off in the direction of the wonderful building. Gogo wasn't much of a shopper but appreciated clothes and loved to accompany Honey while she raced from rack to rack grabbing five hundred things before finally trying them on. She always helped making the decisions of what looked best on Aiko, honesty was her key trait and if something looked like crap on her, she would say it.

"How's it lookin' in there, Honey?" Gogo called from behind the dressing room door.

"Oh just wonderful! I'll be out in a second!" She called back to her friend before zipping up the zipper on a knitted, pastel orange sweater-dress. The article was form fitting and it adorned her usual peterpan collar, plus it was warm so it was extremely suitable for the rather chilly months they'd been receiving. Personally _she _loved the way it looked, especially with the white nylons she was wearing, so she stepped out of the dressing room and did a twirl. "Whaddya think?" Honey smiled happily then placed her hands on her hips.

"I think you'll have Tadashi Hamada all _over _you in that dress." Gogo chuckled and sat back the small plastic chair that she had claimed while she judged Honey's outfits. Aiko chuckled at her best friend who - though was rather tomboyish - really knew how to girl talk. "Speaking of Tadashi, how are things going between you two? Have you got his number? Do you guys even talk outside of lunch?"

Honey's head hung a bit as she answered her friends question honestly. "No… We hardly ever talk at _lunch_, so how am I supposed to get to know him anywhere else?"

"Hey, hey girl. Chin up! You'll get to him eventually, he just has some sort of issue with socializing." Gogo actually lifted her chin as she spoke with a soft smile. "How about, _next weekend_, we all go out for a _friends_ night. Then we drag him along, yeah?"

Honey laughed a bit at her friends words, how they would have to _drag _him along if they wanted him to go. "Yeah. I mean if he and Wasabi have hung out after school than theres no reason the rest of us can't…" She agreed but the disappointment was still plain as day in her voice. "...Did you notice how he called everyone by their nickname except me?"

"Girl, _relax_, he's probably just used to calling you Aiko… wow, I haven't said that in _years_!" Gogo laughed as she ran a hand through her jagged short hair.

"My point_ exactly._" Honey shrugged not liking how she felt so useless over such a stupid thing.

"Come on, why don't we check out this dress and a few other things then go curl up on your sofa with a big bowl of extra buttery popcorn?" Honey laughed and nodded before returning to the dressing room to change.

Aiko only wished there was a better way to interact with Tadashi, and that's where her mind was throughout their whole movie session; wondering about Tadashi and how she could possibly get closer to him.


End file.
